穴 meaning and stroke order
Cave, den, hole
How to write 穴, stroke by stroke
5 strokes in order. Each box adds the next stroke in red. Write top to bottom and left to right, and finish enclosing strokes last.
- 1
- 2
- 3
- 4
- 5
Meaning of 穴
Definitions from CC-CEDICT, grouped by pronunciation.
- cave
- cavity
- hole
- acupuncture point
- Taiwan pr. [xue4]
How 穴 is built
Pictographic character. The mouth of a cave.
How to remember 穴
穴 is a picture of the mouth of a cave. Think of the top part 宀 as a roof of rock, and the 八 underneath as the two sides of the opening leading into the dark hole.
穴 is rarely used alone in everyday speech. It appears in words like 洞穴 (dòngxué, cave), 巢穴 (cháoxué, lair) and 穴位 (xuéwèi, acupuncture point). Example: 按摩这个穴位可以缓解头痛。(Ànmó zhège xuéwèi kěyǐ huǎnjiě tóutòng.) Massaging this acupuncture point can relieve headaches.
Common mistake: Learners often confuse 穴 with 空 (kōng, empty) or 究 (jiū), which use 穴 as their top part, so check whether anything sits below it. Also note the tone: mainland standard is second tone xué, while Taiwan uses fourth tone xuè.
Common words with 穴
Ordered by HSK level, then by how often they appear in everyday Chinese.
穴 in example sentences
Real sentences from the Tatoeba project, with pinyin and English.
Characters that contain 穴
Learning 穴 makes these easier to recognize and write.
Questions about 穴
How many strokes are in 穴?
穴 is written with 5 strokes. The diagrams on this page number every stroke in the order it is written, with the new stroke shown in red.
What does 穴 mean?
穴 (xué) means cave, den, hole. A common word with it is 穴位 (xuéwèi), meaning "acupuncture point; location of a grave".
How do you pronounce 穴?
穴 is pronounced xué, in the second tone (rising).
Is 穴 on the HSK exam?
Yes. 穴 is part of the HSK 7-9 character list in the HSK 3.0 standard.
Why is 太阳穴 the word for the temples of the head?
太阳穴 (tàiyángxué) is a named point in traditional Chinese medicine, and 穴 here means acupuncture point. The name was applied to the soft area on each side of the forehead, so it became the everyday word for temples.
What is the difference between 洞 and 穴?
洞 (dòng) is the common everyday word for a hole or cave, as in 山洞 (shāndòng). 穴 sounds more formal or technical and mostly appears in set words like 洞穴, 墓穴 and 穴位.